blessing. he will pray the last angelus of his pontificate. tens of thousands, if not 100,000 there in vatican square. no real surprise. after eight years on his pontificate standing down the announcement february 11th saying he would resign. we'll see him in general audience on wednesday and then he will leave here, the vatican on thursday. you are now looking at benedict xvi at his window. let's listen in. >> dear brothers and sisters, thank you for your affection to the transfigueration.

that while praying jesus transfigured his profound experience with the father due -- he went to the mountain to gather with john and james, the disciples always present in manifestation. the lord who declared his death offered an anticipation of his glory and, given the transf transfiguration. this is my son, the chosen one. representing the law of the old

alliance was more significance. the all story of the advance to him, the christ, who has started not towards the promised land, but towards heaven. this is a possible temptation to stop the mystic experience. on the mountain had christ who had soul the spirit and should have gone down in fatigue and pain and fighting him.

from these fragments the teaching and importance and supremacy of prayer without this and in this land we have to give the sense, the right sense to prayer, to personal prayer and also community prayer to inspire our special life in northern so that praying is not to be isolated from the world, but prayer must lead us to the path to action. created in the message for this lent, it continues going down, going up the mountain to come down afterwards with love and a

strength in order to share our brothers and sisters with the same love of god. dear, brothers and sisters, these words of god i feel that especially towards me in this moment in my life. the lord, thank you. the lord, the lord is calling me to go up the mountain to devote myself a lot more to prayer now and to meditation. but abundening their cherish and for god requested me to do so is for me to be able to. for me to be able to continue

serving the church with the same l law i have done so far, but my age and my forces virgin mary and to guide and to continue, always, with lord jesus christ in prayer and also in charity. holy mary, full of grace, the lord is with thee.

>> let us pray. amen.

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"early start weekend." i'm susan hendricks in this morning for randi kaye. you have been watching live coverage of bpope benedict's final angelus. god has called him to climb the mountain. this is the official blessing before he retires on thursday. we'll take you live to vatican city for this historic event. back here in the u.s. now where we're watching the fallout from a fiery wreck in daytona beach, florida. the crash on the last lap of the race sent debris flying into the stands. 28 spectators were injured. want to bring in joe carter live from daytona. joe, any update. are you hearing how the injured fans are doing? >> yes, good morning to you, susan. yes, cnn can confirm that as of 5:30 this morning there were four patients remaining at the halifax medical center the location in daytona beach and

three of those four patients do remain in the intensive care unit. one of those icu patients is a male minor. now yesterday joey the speedway president did confirm that 28 people, 28 spectators were hospitalized and 14 were treated at the track hospital and 14 were taken off site to local hospitals. to recap what happened yesterday. this was the final lap of the race, it was a clumatic moment in the race. cars going around 200 inches per hour just inches from each other. regan smith was leading the race and tried to do a blocking maneuver and the two bumped bumpers and that sent kyle larsen's car into the stands and his engine block sheared right through the fence and on to the concourse walkway. debly was spread all over fans.

the number 32 car driven by kyle larsen was missing the entire front end as the car rolled out to the grass area. all 12 drivers involved in the crash walked away. daytona international reporter said the race will go on as scheduled. we came out here before we did our live shot and the fence that needed to be repaired and at this point the fence has been completely repaired and the retaining wall that is up against the track has been repainted and the surface that the racers drive on is okay. we can't show it to you right now, susan, because there's a huge stage that's been set up for a concert that is going to take place before the race today. but they're scheduled to start the daytona 500 at 1:00 p.m. eastern and as of now unless weather holds us up, it looks like this race will start on time. >> the drivers were tweeting wishing the fans well. appreciate that live report in

daytona beach, thanks so much. oscar pistorius isn't the only one in his family accused of killing someone. about an hour ago we learned his brother is charged in the death of another woman. now, lawyers for carl pistorius are speaking out. joining us now from johannesburg. what are they saying? >> you know, susan,ium south african and i've lived here all my life and i have been covering this country for many, many years and i have never become across a more bizarre story. two brothers alleged of killing women. this is the family of oscar pistorius, world famous paralympian. they will give out a press conference or release a statement at some point. until that time, we're having to rely on information that we're getting from our affiliate, enca

and, according to them, they say carl pistorius, who is oscar pistorius' older brother, has been charged with culpable homicide and this is because of an incident that happened in 2010, when he knocked over a woman on a motorcycle, allegedly killing her. enca is reporting that carl pistorius' lawyer, who is the lawyer who is also representing oscar pistorius in his murder case has said that carl pistorius did not test positive for alcohol. this is what his lawyer has told enca. he's due to appear in court in march. this is what we know at the moment. we're trying to get the south african authorities to confirm this information, but they have not yet done so. the pistorius family expected to speak out either through a press statement or a press conference. >> unbelievable what that family must be going through. thanks so much. meanwhile, parole officers are already checking up on oscar

pistorius. the olympic runner is staying at his uncle's secure mansion as part of the conditions of his bail because his home is a crime seen now. he is accused of murdering his girlfriend reeva steenkamp on valentine's day. his next court appearance is set for june. las vegas police have identified a suspect in thur's shooting and car crash that left three people dead. they're looking now for this man. 26-year-old ammar harris. they impounded his black range rover they said was used in the shooting. that is the aftermath. after he crashed into a taxi, which burst into flames, the cabbie and his passenger were killed along with kenneth cherry. how about we take a look at the forecast. not just the northeast that is getting walloped by heavy snowfall. another system is also targeting the plains and the midwest. it's already dumped about two inches of snow in the denver area and more is still coming

down. want to check in with meteorologist karen mcginnis. march is just a few days away, but more snow is not something folks want to see right now. >> these late winter storm systems can impact a broad area, especially when you're really anticipating that spring-time to occur little rapidly. other than what the calendar is saying. but it does look like across the northeast or new england, more specifically, we still have these winter weather advisories that have been issued. a warning out for the coastal sections of maine. a couple more sections there. boston was always in that questionmark zone. we didn't know if it was going to be rain or snow or just all snow or just a heavy, wet snow. last night, not much in the way of snowfall and it looks like it just kind of lingers and i think you're right on the verge of picking up another batch of snow as another little kind of snowfall moves across the

region. across the deep south, additional rainfall and a very stubborn weather system stalled out across the southeast. could see a couple more inches of rainfall, particularly from coastal south carolina to central georgia all the way down towards coastal sections of alabama and mississippi. what about the daytona 500? looks like a pretty good chance of some storms. and then, susan, as if that is not enough. an area of low pressure blasting the central rockies and pull in across the south central plains and then move into the lower great lakes and beyond that point in time, susan, we're nat exactly sure where the snow is headed, but the snowfall could begin to pile up. in some cases more than a foot with blizzard conditions. back to you. >> wow, i thought an early spring was coming, apparently not. karen, thank you. north korea issues a warning to the u.s. over planned military exercises with south korea. the details ahead. í í oil changes at meineke are always a great deal.

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22 minutes past the hour. new secretary of state john kerry hits the road for the first time since he took over for hillary clinton. his 1 1-day meet and greet starts in england before taking him to other key allies like germany and france. he will stop in egypt and saudi arabia. north korea is threatening, "miserable destruction" ahead of routine military exercises between the u.s. and south korea. similar threats have been made by north korea in the past. but these latest warnings come on the heels of the country's

nuclear tests just two weeks ago. south korea's military is already in a heightened state of alert. cuban president raul castro is expected to be sworn in for another five-year term today or tomorrow, but just this past week, he joked about retiring. he told reporters, "i'm going to turn 82. i have a right to retire already. then he said, you don't believe me." he took over for his brother, fidel castro in 2008. his new term will last until 2018. congress gets back to work tomorrow. the first thing on the agend saw the looming for spending cuts. house republicans won't act until the isn't votes on a plan. that could come on wednesday, but still several road blocks that could keep a deal from getting done. so, what if no deal gets done? the immediate effect is an $85 billion cut to federal spending. athena jones looks at one of those consequences. >> reporter: this woman and her son have been living in this

emergency shelter for a year. she's hoping to get help from the government to pay for more permanent housing. >> i'm on a waiting list for public housing, section 8, and i've been on the waiting list for four years. >> reporter: if lawmakers can't reach a deal to stop forced spending cuts by friday. harrison and others like her can find themselves waiting much, much longer. as funds for public housing are slashed by $300 million and more than 100,000 families lose rental assistance, according to the center on budget and policy priorities. >> not like we're in good shape today. the need, the need for housing assistance is vastly outstripping the availability. this is going to make us go backwards and it's going to make the problem even worse. >> reporter: harrison's shelter is run by a nonprofit that gets some funding by donations. critics of housing say they limit this kind of public sector support. >> we know there is very broad,

robust research that says for every dollar government spends on sort of these kinds of programs, it actually crowds out 75 cents of private donation to charities. >> reporter: after losing her job at a clothing store three years ago, harrison has finally had success in finding a new one. at the washington national's baseball stadium. >> i'll be doing the promotion and i'll be at the front entrance passing out t-shirts and keychains and things like that. >> reporter: the position is part-time, but she hopes it will lead to other jobs that will provide a better, more stable life for her son. >> i just want the best for him. >> reporter: one key to that, finding a more permanent home. >> the administration says these budget cuts will mean fewer families will get foreclosure help and communities won't be able to rent as many affordable

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welcome back and thanks so much for starting your morning with us and a special welcome to our troops watching on the american forces network. thank so much for your service. i'm susan hendricks in this morning for randi kaye. it is half past the hour. racing's premier event the daytona 500 will go on even after a crash at the track yesterday injured at least 28 fans. take a look. it happened on the race's last lap. one car careened into the catch fence and broke apart. a lot of flying debris that went into the stands, including a wheel assembly that weighed over 1 00 pounds. three people are in intensive care this morning. in iran now, the government says they have shot down a

"enemy drone." it's supposedly happened during military maneuvers in southern iran. now, iran has not released any pictures of that drone, which they had done when they claimed to have captured two u.s. drones. this video is from one iran says they got in 2011, that is, president obama asked for it back, but iran refused. when the senate gets back to work this week, they will take up the confirmation of chuck hagel, again. on tuesday, they are expected to vote on whether to end the filibuster that has kept the full senate from voting on hagel to be the new defense secretary. republicans have blocked the vote and 15 of them sent a letter to president obama demanding that hagel's name be withdrawn. back to the crash now at daytona. none of the drivers were injured in that spectacular crash, but as i said, at least 28 fans were injured. most were treated or released from the medical center at the track or at a nearby hospital. rick hen drik was in the stands

when the wreck happened. how close were you to the wreck? >> we were, me and my brothers approximately one section over and i'd say maybe about seven or eight rows from where the crash actually happened. >> when did you see it and when did you realize how bad it was? >> of course, as you heard many times before. it all happened so fast that we saw the wreck happening in turn four and then the car just literally explode right in front of us and then we saw the most visual was the tire flying into the actual, into the stands. and when that happened, it was obvious to everybody in that section, somebody had to have been hurt. there was no way there couldn't be a serious injury from that tire. more importantly that entire tire assembly going into the crowd. >> what was the reaction after the wreck? were people coming to the aid of those who were injured? >> you could see from our vantage point just automatically

doing what they can to help the person next to them or the person close to them, screaming and yelling for police, paramedics. just somebody to come and help because there were obvious injuries. people responding to spectators that were sitting right next to them, almost as immediate as the crash. >> did you ever think this might happen because of the way it's situated? >> i've always, you know, been a nascar fan and i always thought that those fences were secure and they always had the opportunity to protect the spectators. and they have in year's past. this particular incident is a little scary. the fact that it actually happened and that, you know, spectators were hurt by the fact that the fence didn't do its job. that's a bit of a concern. >> do you think they should delay the daytona 500 today, which they are not doing, by the

way? >> no, i don't think so. i think this, they need to take a look at that particular part of the fence as to why it happened, but, for the most part, i think it is secure. and there's no reason to delay the daytona 500. >> rick hendrik, thanks so much, appreciate your time. >> thank you. heading overseas now, 30 minutes ago we saw pope benedict xvi give his final angelus prayer. we heard him tell the crowd that he's not abandoning the church and he is going to spend more time praying and meditating now. ben wedemen was in st. peter square in vatican city. we'll talk to him coming up. you may not recognize this man, but for south africa, rodriguez was their answer to bob dylan. the only problem, they knew absolutely nothing about him. now, the world is taking notice and so has the academy awards. stick around for that, we'll explain.

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just about 30 minutes ago we saw pope benedict xvi give his final angelus prayer in front of the crowd. we heard him tell the crowd that he's not abandoning the church and he will spend more time praying and meditating now.

ben wedemen is at st. peter's square in vatican city. ben, how are people reacting today? >> people were very respectful, listening quietily to his angels prayer. he spoke in a variety of languages in french, german, polish, english and portuguese and this underscoring the international nature of the catholic church. many people coming specifically to attend this last angelus prayer by benedict xvi here in st. peter's square. susan? >> anyone speculating why the pope is stepping down? any talk of that? >> of course, there have been in the italian media, specifically, in two publications "the daily newspaper" here in rome and a weekly news magazine talking about the role that an investigation may have played in

his decision to resign. on 17th of december of last year, three cardinals submitted to the pope a 300-page about alleged wrongdoing within the vatican. this within the two italian publications suggesting there was a network of gay priests that were being blackmailed by prostitutes in rome and serious financial misdoing or wrong doing within the vatican. although, of course, officially, the pope has said that he is stepping down because he is simply too old and too unwell to carry on with his duties. now, the vatican roundly condemned or rather denied these reports in the italian media saying they're unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories. susan? >> yeah, the media saying one thing, the vatican another. ben wedemen, thank you.

yes, the red carpets are rolled out in hollywood, just waiting for the stars to arrive. but while films like "lincoln and "argo" a documentation that is hitting close to home for one of our producers. >> rodriguez was released and in south africa it was a very popular album, one of the biggest albums of the day. but the thing was, we didn't know who this guy was. the other rock stars we had all the information we needed. but this guy, there was nothing. >> it is that hunt in south africa for '60s folk singer rodriguez. tonight the movie could take home the award for best documentary. i'm joined now by cnn producer nadia. you have been raving about this film. tell us about it. >> i grew up on the music of

rodriguez and why it's so extraordinary is it documents the search for sixto rodriguez who was as famous as the beatles or rolling stones but lived as a laborer in detroit, virtually poverty stricken and didn't know he was a figure in south africa. >> why do you think so many people in south africa are responding to this as they are? >> they responded to his music. he sang about the anti-establishment blues. he had a wonderful song called "i wonder if hatred will ever end." his lyrics resonated with a whole generation of south africas. they didn't know who he was. >> it's incredible they find him. what is he doing now sph. >> they realize you can't get the album in america, but you can in south africa. right now, rodriguez is doing

concerts in south africa. he's done numerous concerts, sold out concerts in south africa. his first concert was in 1998. he walks into the stadium and there is a standing ovation and he literally goes backwards because he was a laborer in detroit and he on a stage with 50,000 people. i spoke to his daughter yesterday, he still lives in the same house and she says with the same furniture. but he now is playing to soldout concerts in south africa and you can see him in the u.s. in certain concerts and that's what the documentary "searching for sugarland" looks at his life and this extraordinary man. >> looking forward to seeing it. what about all the record sales, no one knew where he was. where did all the money go, did it go to his family? >> they didn't know where a lot of the money went. it was pirated. that is part of the controversy.

now he is getting royalties but his daughter says, he gives the money away. he doesn't use or spend the money. when he's staying in a lavish hotel room he still insists on sleeping on the couch. he has this zen spirituality. sixto rodriguez is a poet along the lines of bob dylan. so interesting and different if he had been made fames and how different his journey would have been. his daughter was telling me last night, he is now 70 years old and sold out in cape town on friday night and hopefully flying back and we may see him tonight at the academy awards. we're not sure if he is going to be up for it, but certainly been invited. >> we're pulling for him tonight to bring home the oscar. >> and for the filmmaker, a swede who found out about the story and on a shoe string budget, filmed and brought this extraordinary story to the world and the famed of rodriguez and you can now get his music cold fact and coming from reality.

>> nadia, thanks so much, appreciate it. be sure to watch our red carpet special tonight. the road to gold begins at 6:00 p.m. eastern. don't miss it. you know, every year more than 400,000 american teens who are qualified to go to college don't. many simply don't know how to get in or aren't even aware that going beyond high school is an option. that's where this week's cnn hero comes in. meet michael carter. >> the state took me and my siblings away from my mom when i was 14. now, we live with our grandparents. i don't want to be faced with the limits that my mom faced and that's why i want to go to college. my grandparents only went to grade school. there is nobody at home that could help me figure out how i could reach my dream. >> applying to college can be very bewildering. there is over 400,000 low-income

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welcome back. time to get you ready for the week ahead and a big week ahead-on monday, the bp trial begins. the oil giant is found guilty of gross negligence in the 2010 deep water horizon oil spill. the company could face roughly $20 billion in fines. also, defensive linebackers are being evaluated and linemen in front of the nfl.

coaches, general managers and scouts leading up to the draft and mani te'o will figure into the evaluation. wednesday, there is an assault weapons hearing that we're expecting. the senate judiciary committee will meet to reinstate the ban on assault weapons. thursday here, i did practice this, the pope steps down, as you know. pope benedict will hold a meet and greet with cardinals before stepping down. he will begin his retirement in the summer residence before he withdraws to a monsary. cutting $85 billion from federal agencies over the next seven months. also on friday, space-x prepares for its second flight to international space station. the launch is scheduled for 10:10 eastern time at cape canaveral station and that will

happen, as you know, in florida. the oscars are the night's big attraction tonight, but today it will be on the track. the daytona 500, the super bowl of motor sports, it's called. the speedway was the site of a horrific crash yesterday. joe carter is live in daytona beach. joe, good morning. >> hi, good morning, susan. as you can imagine, all the talk here at daytona is about that crash in the nationwide race yesterday. crews did work through the night to repair the fence, repair the retaining wall and the track. we will have the daytona 500, as scheduled, 1:00 p.m. eastern start today. but that was a scary scene yesterday as the number 32 car driven by kyle larsen smashed into the fence. the entire front end ripped off the car, including the engine. at least a dozen cars were caught up in the crash but one driver who made it through and won the race was tony stewart. he talked about the crash afterwards. >> i've never seen anything like that. we've seen petty, you know, we've seen a lot of big ones here and i've been a part of a

couple big ones and that's one time when i wish i didn't have a rear view mirror because that was an ugly sight. >> danica patrick missed that because in the nationwide race she did the dreaded walk through the car after her car lost power. today back out there in her cup series car on the pole at the daytona 500 where she is ready to open it up. >> as tony said i can go out there and treat it like a video game and give it all i got and not have to be concerned about being smart and taking care of the car. can i win? yeah, absolutely. finally, talk about girl power. we previewed this fight for you yesterday. last night rhonda remained undefeated in the first-ever all-women matchup. she got a couple good shots in early but rousey came back and

put her in a submission move to get the win. for more information on rhonda rousy and all your sports go to bleacherreport.com. the daytona 500 will go on as scheduled. 1:00 p.m. eastern start. the track, the fence and the retaining wall have all been repaired. >> joe carter live in daytona, thanks. ♪ oh, heavenly day here we go. ♪ cha-cha-cha ♪ don't you know that i love ya ♪ ♪ cha-cha-cha-cha-cha ♪ always thinking of ya ♪ all around the world ♪ everybody singin' along ♪ singin' along ♪ fly me to the moon ♪ let me play among the stars ♪ let me see what spring -- ♪ [ birds chirping ] [ male announcer ] with the best lineup of vehicles ever,

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it just, you know, i know how to do this. i have been in this game for a long time? >> you know, the mechanics of it are surprisingly the same as a lot of other stuff that i've done. it's the, you know, the audience is, obviously, a billion times bigger. >> it's a tough room. >> it's a tougher room. it's a very thin skinned room. >> you have an edgy esthetic. how do you watch that line? >> i'm the wrong guy to do this. >> i'm seth mcfarland and i'll be hosting. >> we saw tina fey and amy poehler. >> if i had one review as good as their worst review for that, i would be a happy man. >> does it put more pressure? this is how you host a show. >> i thought they were fantastic, but they are beloved by the press.

you're awesome, we love you no matter what you do. that said, they were fantastic. but i wouldn't know if they weren't from reading the press because of those reasons. so, i go in with minus ten with the press. i have to get to myself to a level where they can tolerate me and then maybe from there i have a shot at actually getting a positive review. >> do you reach out to those people who you know who have killed at the oscars, who have done it really right? >> i have talked to billy crystal and he was super nice guy and genuinely helpful. took a lot of time out of his schedule to sit down with me and i came out of it with some practical, practical stuff and it was, i'm very grateful to him for taking his time. >> can you tell me one thing he told you? >> get comfortable with your shoes before you get